Registration for the third edition of the Medianes Program, a collective mentorship initiative designed by and for founders and leaders of independent, mission-driven media outlets, closes on March 2. A panel of 10 independent, mission-driven media projects will be selected to participate in the adventure.
In creating this program, we aimed to offer the most useful and most accessible support for emerging media leaders. Thanks in particular to financial support from the Ministry of Culture, we are able to offer a one-year collective program at a price of €150 per month, for ten projects.
To select the 10 projects chosen for this new edition, we are calling upon six leaders and media professionals who share Médianes' values. Their expertise will allow us to build a cohort that is sufficiently rich and balanced to create an environment conducive to project development. We rely on their keen insight into the ecosystem, how it operates, and their experience (management, journalism, marketing, leadership, funding…) to enrich our own perspective.
Indeed, the jury will also include members of the Médianes team: Marine Doux, Baptiste Thevelein, Christelle Perrin, and Pauline Butel. We will bring our own expertise (management, leadership, marketing, design) to enrich the discussions that will shape this third cohort. We are also supported in the selection process by Siméon Brand, junior project manager.
Each project will be evaluated based on different criteria:
- solidity and coherence of the editorial project;
- foundation of a sound economic model;
- development prospects and project ambition;
- positive impact of the project ;
- capacity for evolution within the program and then, within the ecosystem.
Our main priority will be to identify the projects where the Médianes Program will be most useful, so they can consolidate and scale up.
Learn more about the jury in detail
For the second cohort of the program, we are pleased to have on the jury: Lou Grasser (Le Monde), Julien Cadot (Numerama), Iman Ahmed (Le 1), Perrine Daubas (Kometa, Reporters without Borders), Gilles Tanguy (l'Informé), Karen Bastien (WeDoData), and from Médianes, Marine Doux, Baptiste Thevelein, Christelle Perrin and Pauline Butel.
Julien Cadot – Numerama
Julien was a freelance journalist and entrepreneur for 5 years, collaborating notably with the magazines Humanoïde, ÈreNumérique, and Frandroid. He joined the Humanoid group in 2015 to oversee editorial strategy, then became editor-in-chief of Numerama. He now leads the execution of the group's projects as Chief Operating Officer.
Lou Grasser – Le Monde
Lou Grasser is Director of Marketing & Product at Le Monde. She is responsible for growing print and digital subscriptions, developing audience, improving user experience, and CRM strategy. She joined in 2015 to develop the audience for the site and applications of Le Monde, and quickly implemented new initiatives to drive digital subscription growth, thereby contributing to the company's business model transformation. She is also currently a member of Le Monde Group's executive committee, a member of Télérama's supervisory board, and treasurer of the Online Publishers Association (OPA Europe). She previously worked at Google and Prisma Média.
Lou Grasser's perspective on developing editorial products tailored to audiences and her knowledge of audience behavior make her an expert in development and adaptation strategy—including within one of France's most iconic and longest-established traditional media outlets.
Iman Ahmed – The 1st
Iman Ahmed is a member of the 1 team and the quarterly publications Zadig and Légende. After overseeing the newspaper's editorial production and co-productions, she is now director of development for this independent group. She is also a member of the literary experimentation journal L'Allume-Feu, a self-published venture with an unpredictable publication schedule.
Perrine Daubas – Kometa, Reporters Without Borders
A consultant in media development strategy and patronage, Perrine Daubas co-founded the journal Kometa. Author of two books on patronage and philanthropy, she previously worked for La Déferlante and Reporters Without Borders, where she still serves today as editor-in-chief of the publication.
Gilles Tanguy – L'Informé
Gilles Tanguy has been an economics journalist for 25 years. After two years at l'Express and four years at the magazine l'Expansion, it was at Capital where he spent most of his career. First as an investigative reporter in the magazine's business section, covering retail, banking and high-tech sectors, then as editor-in-chief of the website for six years. He simultaneously led the editorial teams of Business Insider France, GEO, NEON and Ça m'intéresse.
Gilles Tanguy was part of the second cohort of the Médianes Program to receive support in developing l'Informé, an investigative news site focused on economics founded in 2022. He is its editor-in-chief.
Karen Bastien – WeDoData
Born as a journalist during the Internet bubble, Karen Bastien has retained an obsession: how to intelligently connect new narratives, tech and innovation? Whether at Libération (2000-2006), by cofounding Terra eco (2006-2012) or by creating WeDoData, a data journalism and data visualization studio (since 2012).
And what about Médianes in all this?
Jury members will participate alongside us in evaluating projects holistically and building the second cohort of the Médianes Program. Among the Médianes team mobilized for project selection, we have five people with diverse profiles (editorial, marketing, technical, design).
Baptiste Thevelein — Medians and Countries
Co-founder and Project Director at Médianes, Baptiste Thevelein leads the team responsible for digital products, advocacy, and commercial strategy. An expert in websites and web products, subscription and fundraising campaigns, and economic model development, Baptiste advises numerous leaders in growing their organizations.
Beaux Arts, StreetPress, Reporters sans frontières, AOC, Arrêt sur images, POLITICO, 60 Millions de Consommateurs, TheMetaNews and Vert are among his collaborations. Baptiste is also co-founder and editor-in-chief of the magazine Pays dedicated to territories.
Pauline Butel — Medians
Head of coaching and training at Médianes, Pauline Butel is responsible for the Médianes Programme and training-related matters.
Pauline notably spearheaded marketing campaign strategy and oversaw the development of a support program for 20 media outlets from the Balkans (CFI). In 2023, Pauline supported the Arrêt sur images team in its subscription campaign (+1000 new subscribers in October 2023) and in developing a marketing division.
Christelle Perrin — Medians and Lands
Artistic Director of Médianes, Christelle Perrin oversees all of Médianes' graphic productions and supports studio projects in this area. Christelle creates paper and web mockups, visual identities, and mappings for media on a daily basis, and also directs the artistic vision of the Pays journal.
Among her collaborations, Christelle has worked with La Déferlante, La Disparition, France Médias Monde (RFI, France24), Maze, Le Ticket, L'Intimiste, POLITICO in Europe, Thiga, 60 Millions de Consommateurs, etc.
Marine Doux — Medians
Co-founder and Director of Projects, Marine Doux leads the editorial and marketing team at Médianes. An expert in audience development, business models and management, she helps media leaders daily build sustainable and ethical news organizations.
Since 2018, she has worked on launching and developing around a hundred titles, from traditional media to emerging publications, including La Déferlante, Vert, POLITICO in Europe, Kometa, RFI, La Disparition, Arrêt sur images, etc.
About the Medianes Program
The Médianes Program aims to provide founders with the analytical frameworks, methods and tools they need to develop their media project on viable, virtuous business models—and to take their development to the next level. It is intended for anyone with an existing independent and purpose-driven media project who wishes to grow it.
This program offers nine months of support, starting in April 2025, divided into three months of group training, followed by six months of individual coaching, plus a post-program assessment twelve months after launch.
To learn more about the selection process, or about the Médianes Program in general, visit the program's website.
